Democrat Schneider has a district drawn in his favor but an underfunded campaign

He stresses a willingness to compromise but shies away from specifics. 'I'm not coming with a book of plans.'

National Republicans have slapped at Schneider's stance on Bush-era tax cuts. Before the primary, Schneider said during a "Chicago Tonight" debate on WTTW that he would let all the tax cuts expire. Later, Schneider said he would only allow the cuts to expire for those making more than $250,000 a year. That's similar to President Barack Obama's position.

Schneider chalked it up to his status as a political rookie.

"I certainly could have been more artful about how I said it and I'm getting better at framing," he said. "I've never advocated for raising taxes on working middle-class families."